A Nice Drive South

The Mercury showed –6 this morning, making this a really cold start of the day. But the reward was a cloudless sky from the east to the west. So by 11am we were already rolling across the border bound southwards. Traffic was light to begin with, but once we passing Bangor and later Augusta, there was some more traffic, but we were on the I-95 and things were still flowing pretty good. Shortly after 2pm we reached Lewiston, where I had never been. We had a Motel 6 reservation and though one really can’t expect much of any Motel 6 we found conditions in the room very deplorable. Dirty floor and dirty bed covers. Yuk! Since the day was still young we looked for something to do in this town. Looking at the map we found out that there was a bird sanctuary close by. It’s called the Thorncrag bird sanctuary, and once we found it we were amazed, not of the birds, cause they had all flown away before it got cold, but the trees, the whole forest was impressive. The trees seemd to reach the sky, Old stately trees indeed. A forest that seemed genuin and original, most likely never been logged was stretching out across a hilly area. But due to the sun going low, our walk was a short one. Reaching back to our van, we decided to go find a restaurant to have supper. With the help of our norwegian-talking GPS girl we found a Denny’s. Generally not a bad choice, Bea’s salad had some ominous slime on some the spinach leaves. We told the server and the manager popped up at our table. We were offered a free dessert, but we were full and I ust ordered a coffee on the house. Driving back to the motel, it was pitch dark and we were thankful again for our GPS showing the way. Tomorrow we gotta pick up our DIXIE in Casco, ME and then we will turn homewards again. We did lots of pictures but forgot to take the card reader with us so can’t move the pics to the laptop yet. Will do after our return home.

It’s The Evening Before…And Dixie Is On The Road Tonight.

Where did the week go again? Friday came and went and tomorrow we are going 4hrs south to Lewiston,ME. We will stay there overnight and going on to Casco to pick up Dixie. Dixie is on the road tonight. I am a bit afraid for her. It’s over 1500 miles up from Little Rock,AR and a lot of things might happen. Is she going to be fed? Does she have water to drink? Is she afraid of the long drive? Are there breaks to get out for doing a dog’s business? I know the transport is USDA approved…..but what if….? Too many questions, too many worries, I know. Gotta wait until we are there. Leaving tomorrow. Until then from Lewiston.

One More Week

Did you count the days to Christmas when you were a kid? I did. And I am most surprised to discover that I’m doing it again. Not to Christmas this time though, but to November the 12th. when we will receive our furbaby DIXIE. While waiting, we spend time learning all we can about the breed, (Pyrenees) and all derivates of it, and training a puppy. We have watched countless videos published by all kind of more or less successfull dog trainers. We endulge in the cute images of playfull puppies and just now Bea is out there buying a dog crate for training, cause it is important that our new furry companion will have a place of his own. Furniture will have to be moved out of the livingroom to make space for that crate. Not that we are planning to keep the dog in a crate at all times, but it’s gonna be a resting place for Dixie after playtime. Can anyone be more excited than us? Hell, it’s like expecting a baby. Of course we are anxious about the timely arrival of the transport. In anticipation I have already booked a room for us. A friendly soul in Maine is gonna meet the truck and we are gonna meet with that lady the next morning to receive Dixie. When not perusing dog videos we try to keep ourselves busy with chores. One of my still unfinished chores is producing firewood for next winter season. Meanwhile, Bea has been gathering up a lot of her plants and moved them into the greenhouse. Nights are finally getting cooler and there could be frost any time now. Day temps are still pretty nice with lots of sunshine though. To do something else I have tried to design a tourism logo for Campobello Island. What do you think? A thing I got worried about was one of our vans losing coolant. Since we plan on using that van next weekend, I brought it over to our mechanic to diagnose the problem. The diagnosis was quick and hefty. He called 15 minutes later telling me that coolant was leaking out of the radiator and that I would need a new radiator. Also, the coolant line to the transmission looked to be in need for replacement. Darn…I had a hunch about looming repair costs. Oh-well, most important is getting our new family member safely home.

A Strong Wind–But No Storm Here

While much of Maine was pounded by a strong hurrican-style storm, Campobello stayed relatively calm. Gusts may have been at 50mph but no trees fell over hitting the power lines. Driving rain, yes, but the brunt went north towards Quebec. However, I was curious to take a look from Liberty Point. It was pretty rough out there, and I had to park in an angle away from the wind or I would get my camera wet. With the sidewindow down just a tad, I was able to shoot through the open gap, yet it was hard to avoid getting rain drops on the lens, and the van was rocking. The wind was blowing from the south-east straight over from Grand Manan.